Yes, they will change based on your practice plan settings. Read article #305 for more details.

#286

Players

Q.

How much will players improve each year?

A.

Nobody knows - it all depends on the kid, what you are practicing, how much playing time he receives, etc.

#287

Players

Q.

Do free throw ratings ever improve in mid-season? I have a bunch of 'F' free-throw shooters that have been practicing free throws 30 minutes a practice, and not getting any better. Am I wasting their time?

A.

Yes, it's possible, but nothing is guaranteed. For example, DeAndre Jordan practices free-throw shooting after every practice, but is still a horrific free throw shooter. You have to decide whether it's worth continuing to pursue or not. Also, a player may be improving, but let's say he's gone from a 40 to a 50% free throw shooter, both are still classified as 'F'.

#288

Players

Q.

Do players improve in the offseason? How much?

A.

Players CAN improve in the off-season - normally the amount of off-season improvement is not as great as any improvement during the season. Some players may loaf around all summer and actually get worse.

#289

Players

Q.

What do the ratings mean?

A.

Players are rated in 12 different categories, each are based from 1 - 100 with 1 being the worst and 100 being the best.

Rating

Description

Athleticism (A)

Affects nearly every area of the game, from shooting to rebounding to defense, and more.

Affects offensive ability closer to the basket, including post up plays as well as dribble drives and other close shots.

Perimeter (PE)

Affects offensive ability from the perimeter, including 3-point range and mid-range shots.

Ball Handling (BH)

Affects ability to avoid turnovers and ability to get in better position for shots.

Passing (P)

Affects ability to avoid turnovers and improves the quality of shots for teammates.

Work Ethic (WE)

Affects the rate of improvement for other ratings.

Stamina (ST)

Affects how long a player can play before tiring and how quickly he recovers after becoming fatigued.

Durability (DU)

Affects the odds of player suffering an injury and the severity of the injury.

Also, each player has a Free Throw Grade, which indicates free throw shooting ability, and ranges from A+ (great) to F (very poor).

#290

Players

Q.

Do players get tired?

A.

Yes, based on the stamina of the player, how many minutes he's playing, the style of defense, offensive tempo, and stoppages in the game, players can get tired which can impact performance. There is no game to game fatigue – meaning everyone starts every game at 100%. The stamina ratings refer to their in-game conditioning. For example, playing a player with a 20 stamina rating for 35 minutes is not a good idea – he’ll stay in the game, but he’ll be tired and play worse.

Durability refers to their likelihood of injury - and if they do get injured, how quickly they can recover.

#291

Players

Q.

How do I know when players are getting tired during games?

A.

In the play-by-play, about every 4 minutes of game time, the condition of each player on the floor is displayed using a color-coded square.

#292

Players

Q.

How do I improve a players work ethic?

A.

You can't - generally work ethic will go up or down based on playing time and starts.

#293

Players

Q.

Will work ethic affect improvement rate or is it more a reflection of attitude, increasing or decreasing likelihood of off-court problems?

A.

Yes, players who have a better work ethic have a better likelihood of improving based on your practice plans, even during the off-season.

#298

Players

Q.

How important is work ethic? In other words, how much will guys improve with practice?

A.

Work Ethic is important in projecting how quickly and how much a player will improve. There are other factors that affect rate of improvement, so high work ethic alone doesn't always mean a lot of fast improvement. A player with very low work ethic will only see minimal improvements, even over multiple seasons.

#299

Players

Q.

Do players grow? If I sign a 6'7" center, is there a chance he might add 2-3 inches?

A.

Yes, you could possibly see players grow from their freshman to senior seasons.

Does resting a player increase the rate at which his health returns to normal (for both cases - severe and non-severe injuries)?

A.

No, resting a player does not increase the rate at which they recover.

#678

Players

Q.

If a player transfers, do I get recruiting resources for that open spot?

A.

Yes, if the player transfers you'll be given recruiting resources to fill his scholarship assuming you don't have more than 6 scholarships to fill. However, if the transfer was due to a broken promise you'll only get half the normal amount.

#680

Players

Q.

If you have players declare for the draft, are they gone for good or is there a possibility that they could return to school?

A.

If a player declares early for the NBA draft, they're not coming back.

#695

Players

Q.

Why do I keep losing players early to the draft?

A.

When you are recruiting the elite level players, losing them early to the NBA is part of the game and should be factored into your recruiting strategy.

#698

Players

Q.

My senior point guard came as a sophomore. He was a transfer from a D-II school where he was an academic non-qualifier as a freshman. He has kept a 3.0 GPA, will he have an extra-year of eligibility?

A.

Yes, he should have a 5th year of eligibility if he chooses to stick around after he graduates.

#709

Players

Q.

Why did my player's Work Ethic drop when he got hurt?

A.

If a player is at 60% health or better and you have promised him a starting spot or guaranteed minutes, he may become upset if he doesn't get them.

#740

Players

Q.

Does potential mean the same thing for any player regardless of their current rating?

A.

Potential is a measure of how much room a player has left to improve that rating. It is not directly related to the current rating - So a player with a current rating of 20 & High potential may improve the same total amount as a player with a current rating of 60 and High potential.

#762

Players

Q.

How do underclassmen decide whether to enter the NBA draft?

A.

All players are ranked based on ratings, national awards (e.g. All-American team), team success, division, and prestige. Underclassmen then make their decision based on where they project combined with their current class. So a sophomore would require a higher projection than a junior in order for them to leave for the draft.

Also, teams cannot lose any further early entries once they've lost 6 total players (seniors + other early entries). However, players signed as senior transfers no longer count in the number of seniors.

#851

Players

Q.

Why is my player complaining about promises if he's injured?

A.

If a player was promised a starting spot or minutes, he will expect to play in any game where he's above 60% health. At that point, he's technically able to play in a game, and so he will expect to do so. Playing while less than 100% health does not increase the odds of further injury, it just decreases the player's effectiveness.

#858

Players

Q.

How do player roles work?

A.

Player roles are basically a way to assign a custom overall rating to players. When you create a player role formula, you apply a weighting to each rating. The overall rating for a player using that role is then calculated by applying those percentage weights to the player's ratings and then adding them all up.

These custom formulas can be used in a number of ways to make evaluating players easier:

On the recruiting search page, the "Overall Rating" option lets you choose whether to use the default overall rating, or one of the player roles you've defined.

On the recruiting compare list popup page, you can select from your role formulas to compare the selected players.

On the User Settings page, you can designate whether to use the default overall rating or you can designate a different player role for each position. If you use player roles, any time you see a player's overall rating, it will be calculated based on the role you've designated for his position.

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